Ahmed Nasser, head of the Arraba council in the Lower Galilee, was shot on Sunday evening in the town and was moderately wounded. Alongside him, the head of the local popular committee and council member Anwar Yassin was also shot and sustained moderate injuries. Both were evacuated to hospital.
Immediately after reports of the shooting were received, police forces in large numbers were dispatched to Arraba.
Police began extensive searches in the area in an attempt to locate suspects involved in the shooting, while checkpoints were simultaneously set up on roads leading out of the town.
The Arraba council head had previously been under significant threat from criminal elements, among other reasons due to municipal tenders.
Interior Ministry Director General Israel Uzan responded: “Violence and shootings against any person are unacceptable and extremely serious. Opening fire at the head of a local authority constitutes a severe crossing of a red line. An attack on an elected official is a direct attack on local government and on the ability of authorities to serve their residents. The infiltration of violence and crime into the public sphere and into centers of local leadership is a dangerous phenomenon that must not be tolerated. I call on the Israel Police to act quickly and decisively to locate the shooters and bring them to justice with the full severity of the law."